DULWICH 146 (43.2) beat EGHAM 134 (54.4) by 12 runs

A depleted Dulwich side travelled to Egham for their Travelbag Surrey Championship Division 2 match, and emerged victorious in a low scoring match by just 12 runs.

Dulwich had to make six changes from the previous week, giving first team debuts to two players from the second team, and recalling Ed Matten for his first match for the first team for four years, and his first for any team this season. Put in to bat, the two other Eds, Stolle and Towner, took the score to 26 in the ninth over when Stolle fell for 11. The next three wickets fell to Marlon Cornelius, who normally opens the bowling but was not used until the 13th over after arriving late. He removed Towner for 21, Henry Hazlewood for 18 and Matten for 4, to reduce Dulwich to 68-4 in the 21st over.

Salaar Waqar was now joined by debutant Guy Skinner, and they added 31 together before Cornelius removed Skinner for 18. He followed up in his next over by claiming the other debutant Ajmal Patankar for a single to give him his fifth wicket. Dulwich had declined to 108-6 after 30.2 overs, but Waqar remained for another 13 overs before becoming the ninth wicket to fall. His resolute 42, scored off 79 balls, turned out to be comfortably the highest score of the match. He was given good support by Jon Lodwick, with an obdurate 3 off 21 balls, Levi Olver, with a breezy 12 off 18, and Kamran Munawar, who was last out for 2. Keeper Andrew Gilmour claimed four catches, mostly from leg-side tickles, plus a stumping as Dulwich were dismissed for 146 in the 44th over.

There were 56 overs left for Egham to get the runs or Dulwich to take ten wickets. This proved to be only just enough as the last wicket did not fall until the penultimate over. Lodwick and Munawar bowled a testing opening spell, and Lodwick was rewarded with three wickets in his first five overs to reduce Egham to 15-3. Gilmour and 19 year old Will Brown dug in, but Lodwick struck again to dismiss Brown, and Gilmour fell to skipper Alex Gledhill for 20 to make it 43-5. Adam Dix and Chris Douglas were unable to force the pace against slow left armers Gledhill and Olver, but with plenty of time available were happy to score at around two an over. The pair had added 46 in 20.2 overs when Lodwick returned to remove Dix for 22 and claim his fifth wicket. Only five runs had come from the next five overs when Waqar chipped in with the seventh wicket.

With 53 still needed off the last 12 overs Cornelius was promoted to look for quick runs, which he did successfully if not always intentionally by hitting 19 off 16 balls. He fell to Gledhill with the score on 119, to be followed by Douglas in the skipper’s next over with no addition to the score, his top score of 29 having taken a mammoth 107 balls. The last pair came together with 28 needed off 5.3 overs. With Egham desperate for victory they continued to go for the runs, and had advanced to 134 when a Patankar stumping off Gledhill ended the match, to give Dulwich victory by 12 runs with just eight balls to spare. The skipper finished with 4-25 off 11.4 overs, while Lodwick recorded his best figures for the club with 5-48 off 17.

With most of the sides around them also winning, Dulwich remain in sixth place. Next week they visit third placed Farnham as the competition reverts to 50 overs per side.

DULWICH 180 (53.3) lost to WORCESTER PARK 183-3 (37.3) by 7 wickets

Dulwich were thoroughly outplayed by Worcester Park, going down to defeat in their Travelbag Surrey Championship Division 2 match by seven wickets.

Dulwich elected to bat and got off to a remarkable start as acting skipper Ed Stolle hit the first ball of the match into a neighbouring garden, necessitating a lengthy search for a replacement. He and Tom Savill then repeated their dominating form of the previous week, needing just 7.5 overs to post their fifth opening stand of 50 or more in seven attempts. This was to prove a false dawn. Savill’s dismissal for 25, scored at a run a ball, was soon followed by three more wickets, including Stolle for 35, also at a run a ball, to reduce Dulwich to 67-4 after 16 overs. Keeper Ed Hopkins and Jack Anderson then found runs hard to come by against the opposition spinners. They had added 24 in ten overs for the fifth wicket when Anderson was caught behind for 14 off 34 balls.

Stuart Ferguson now joined Hopkins, and played a staunch supporting role while Hopkins pushed the score along at the other end. The partnership had added 40 in 11.4 overs when Ferguson fell, having also batted 34 balls, with just three scoring shots for his 7. He was followed two overs later by Hopkins, whose 43 had taken 79 balls. Salaar Waqar fell for 7 to become the eighth wicket with the score on 143. Jon Lodwick then joined Naeem Iqbal in a spirited ninth wicket stand of 37 in 8.5 overs, before both were dismissed on the same score, having made 15 and 19 respectively. Dulwich were all out for 180 in the 54th over, leaving their opponents 46 overs to get the runs.

Lodwick and Kamran Munawar opened the bowling impressively, each removing one of the openers to reduce Worcester Park to 25-2 in the seventh over. But that was as good as it got. Iqbal also bowled aggressively but, with both the regular slow left armers unavailable, the spinners were unable to exert the same control as their opponents. As he had done in the first match skipper Rob Hill led the way. He added 87 for the third wicket with Danny Palmer, who was bowled by Stolle for 44, and 71 for the fourth with Charlie King, whose 43 not out came at a run a ball. Hill finished on 69 not out off 87 balls, to see his side to a seven wicket victory in the 38th over.

Dulwich gained just two batting points from this defeat, and slip two places to sixth. Next week they visit eighth placed Egham, who will be desperate for a win to lift them clear of the relegation zone.

EPSOM 133 (49.5) lost to DULWICH 134-2 (27.3) by 8 wickets

Dulwich returned to winning ways with a comprehensive eight wicket victory in their Travelbag Surrey Championship Division 2 match away to Epsom.

The home side elected to bat, but lost their first wicket in the third over when Ben Hudson was bowled by Jon Lodwick. South African OP Godfrey Stevens and Asim Zeb withstood a probing opening spell by Lodwick and Kamran Munawar, taking the score to 40 after 14 overs. A double bowling change brought on Leon Sealy and skipper Alex Gledhill, who both bowled tidily. Godfrey and Zeb proceeded steadily without really getting on top of the bowling, surviving a dropped slip catch and a broken bat respectively. The score had reached 86 in the 28th over when Zeb was well caught by Tom Savill to become the first of three wickets to fall in successive Sealy overs. Stevens was run out, having made 55 off 79 balls, and skipper Phil Edwards fell for 2.

Ed Stolle, fresh from taking seven wickets last week, replaced Sealy and continued in the same vein by taking the next three wickets in his first three overs. Gledhill picked up the next two to reduce Epsom to 126-9, the last six batsmen having managed just 11 runs between them. The number 4 bat Will Moore had remained unperturbed at the other end but made no effort to farm the strike as wickets tumbled. He was last out for 27 to give Lodwick his third catch and Stolle his fourth wicket, having conceded just 14 runs off 7.5 overs. Gledhill completed a marathon spell with 2-38 off 18 miserly overs, while Sealy also had 2-38 off his ten. Epsom had lost their last nine wickets for just 47 runs in 22.3 overs to be all out for 133 in the 50th over.

The Epsom bowlers were unable to exert the same control, as Stolle and Savill needed just 8.4 overs to record their fourth 50 opening stand of the season in just six attempts. Stolle led the way, monopolizing both the strike and the scoring while racing to 42 off 47 balls. It took the introduction of Zeb, the sixth bowler used in just 14 overs, to dismiss him with the score on 70. Ed Towner fell in Zeb’s next over, and the scoring rate slowed as Savill and Will Bancroft consolidated. Savill advanced steadily to his half century, and then took the bowling apart, scoring his last 25 runs off just seven balls. Dulwich reached their target in 27.3 overs, with Savill finishing on 78 off 80 balls, and Bancroft playing a sensible supporting role with 11 off 33.

Dulwich can be well satisfied with their convincing win over the second placed team. They climb to fourth in the table, while their opponents failed to pick up a point and slip to third. Next week Dulwich have a home match against Worcester Park, who won the first encounter between the sides, and are now two points behind them in fifth place.

DULWICH 132 (48.1) lost to BANK OF ENGLAND 133-9 (42.3) by 1 wicket

For the second week running, Dulwich lost a low scoring Travelbag Surrey Championship Division 2 match by one wicket, this time away to Bank of England.

Dulwich were put in to bat on a pitch still showing the effects of torrential midweek rain. They got off to a disastrous start as openers Ed Stolle and debutant James Godrich were both dismissed without a run on the board, having faced just five balls between them. Richard King and Will Bancroft took the score to 22 after seven overs when heavy rain caused a 30 minute delay, knocking four overs off each team’s allocation. King fell in the next over, soon followed by another newcomer Henry Hazlewood. Bancroft was the fifth wicket to fall in the 13th over, having contributed 21 of the 37 runs scored at that point. It was left to Nick Hudson, who top scored with 29, and Leon Sealy, with 11, to repair the damage, which they did in a stand of 38 in 15 overs before both fell in successive overs to make it 80-7 in the 29th. Naeem Iqbal then led a staunch rearguard action, adding 27 with Salaar Waqar, who made 18, and 25 with Jon Lodwick. Both fell to successive balls, Iqbal being caught behind off the last ball of the 48th over for 19, and Lodwick going the same way off the first ball of the 49th for 13, the fourth time in the innings that two wickets had fallen in successive overs. Skipper Alex Gledhill was left not out without facing, but the last five wickets had added 95 runs to lift the score to 132 and hopefully give themselves something to bowl at.

Bank were left 43 overs to get the runs, and the openers started in contrasting fashion, with Henry Goodwin scoring steadily off Iqbal at one end, while skipper Janil Ramesh defended resolutely against a probing spell by Lodwick at the other. Lodwick got his reward by bowling Ramesh for a dogged 4 off 34 balls. He followed up with two more wickets, assisted by a stunning catch by Hudson at third slip, in an impressive spell of 3-15 off nine overs. King also picked up a wicket as Bank declined from 22-0 to 32-4. The fifth wicket pair then added a round 50 off 13.3 overs before both fell to spin twins Waqar and Gledhill, again in successive overs, to make it 84-6 in the 30th. Sam Ferrick and James Woodroof came together with 49 still needed off 13.1 overs, and advanced inexorably towards their target. Lodwick was recalled but was unable to make the breakthrough, and the pair had added 31 in eight overs when Gledhill had Ferrick lbw. Woodroof then scored all of the next 12 runs to progress to 127-7 after 41 overs, whereupon Gledhill struck again, taking two wickets without cost in the penultimate over, to finish with 4-25 off 12 overs and bring the last pair together.

Six runs were needed off the final over, to set up a similar scenario to the first match between the sides, when Bank’s last pair needed five off the last over. On that occasion the number 11 was on strike, and they failed to get the runs. This time Woodroof was facing, and he got a lucky four after a misfield on the boundary from the second ball and a two off the third to give his side their first victory of the season with three balls to spare.

Dulwich pick up just three points from this game, but remain in fifth place. Next week they will be looking to return to winning ways when they visit Esher, who are one place and four points beneath them in the table.

DULWICH 116 (44.2) lost to CHESSINGTON 119-9 (39.2) by 1 wicket

In a nail-biting finish, Dulwich lost by one wicket in a low scoring Travelbag Surrey Championship Division 2 match at home to Chessington.

After heavy overnight rain and a delayed start, Chessington won the toss and elected to field. Ed Stolle and Tom Savill set off at a good pace which gave no hint of the drama to come, putting on 51 for the first wicket in 10.5 overs. Both went to change bowler Prince Singh in successive overs, with Savill making a belligerent 29 off 37 balls, including 16 off one over, and Stolle following for 20 off 36. Ed Towner and Will Bancroft then carried on their good work of the previous week, taking the score to 75 after 18 overs. At this point spin was introduced, and the game changed abruptly as the bowlers extracted prodigious turn. Both batsmen played on, Towner for 13 and Bancroft for 26, and Ed Hopkins was clean bowled for 3. Dulwich had gone from 88-2 to 96-5.

Runs now dried up completely as the lower order opted for defence, with Naeem Iqbal and Jon Lodwick both taking 36 balls for uncharacteristic innings of 7 and 4 respectively. This proved to no avail as the Chessington spinners continued to work their way through the innings. Skipper Dan Yarnley finished with 5-22 in 13.5 overs of off spin, while slow left armer Richard Singleton took 3-12 off 12 miserly overs. Dulwich were dismissed for 116, having lost their last eight wickets for 28 runs in 21 overs, an ordeal by spin that had yielded just a single boundary.

The Chessington innings started in similar fashion as Karl Thorns went for his shots against the quicker bowlers, making 34 off 36 balls out of an opening stand of 41, before giving Lodwick a well-deserved wicket in the twelfth over. By now Levi Olver had entered the attack with his left arm spin. He was soon joined by off spinner Salaar Waqar who took the second wicket, having obdurate opener Singh lbw for 8, off a marathon 52 balls. The Chessington innings now followed a similar pattern to the Dulwich as the batsmen tried unsuccessfully to defend their way out of trouble. Olver took the next four wickets in 15 balls without conceding a run as he reduced the visitors to 55-6.

Yarnley was joined by Paul Willis, and they changed the pattern of the match with an assault on Olver that saw him taken out of the attack. The pair had added 39 runs in 7.4 overs when Waqar removed Willis and Singleton in successive balls to make it 94-8 after 32 overs, still 23 runs short of victory. Luke Barnard helped his captain lift the score to 107 before Alex Gledhill had him caught by Savill at gully, his third excellent catch of the innings. This brought in last man Jack Strange, who managed to hold up an end, and sneak a streaky 2, while Yarnley knocked off the runs. The captain contributed 35 unbeaten runs off 52 balls, the top score on either side, to go with his five wickets in a match winning all round performance. Olver finished with 4-37 off 11.2 overs, and Waqar 3-32 off 12.

Dulwich were left to rue two missed chances that might have averted a defeat which pushes them down two places to fifth. Next week they visit Bank of England, who have still to win a game and are currently in ninth place.

@MitchamCC@DulwichHamletFC@OfficialTmufc@MitchamCC our u12s were disappointed that their 2017 game at Cricket Green was washed out; believe our u14s and u16s are playing you there this summer, looking forward to it. We should try and get a girls’ game on at a venue with such a proud history of hosting women’s cricket!

Please note that due to floor replacement at Dulwich College Sports Centre there are no indoor nets this Sunday, 18th March. We await confirmation about the 25th March. Keep an eye on e-mails and website.

@PROACTIVE_Swk@lb_southwark Exciting times as all four teams in the semifinals hail from south of the river (Richmond sort of as it’s both sides of the river). Southwark play Greenwich and Bromley take on Richmond.....

In south London? Like cricket? Lewisham cricket winter training resumes tomorrow, ages 8-14, any level, all welcome, new players particularly so. Very nice set of coaches. Based in SE6. @ me for full details